sick tomatoes

[tfb4me]

Hello to all once again! It seems I'm having one heck of a time with our gardens this year..now it appears that our tomatoes are dieing off. They are Sicilian saucers. I harvest my own seed and have been growing this strain for 5 years problem free. Suddenly this is happening. Any ideas on how to control this organically? Or are they doomed?

 

[Beth_B]

It looks like they are yellowing at the bottom....do you have any close-up photos of the leaves?

I'm not terribly far from you and for the first time in my life I've had early blight and have lost some tomato plants already. I'm going to hazard a guess for EB; we've had some very very wet summers recently. If that's what it is, Chuck answered a recent thread of mine in the "diseases and pests" forum with lots of info.

 

[tfb4me]

 

[Beth_B]

Huh, I have no idea. I assume you've looked up EB - yellow leaves with black spots that start from the bottom of the plant (it's a soil-borne fungus) and work their way up. Those just look limp.
I hope someone has some better advice, then! And I also hope you can save your tomato crop. They look otherwise very healthy.

 

[Chuck]

Hello to all once again! It seems I'm having one heck of a time with our gardens this year..now it appears that our tomatoes are dieing off. They are Sicilian saucers. I harvest my own seed and have been growing this strain for 5 years problem free. Suddenly this is happening. Any ideas on how to control this organically? Or are they doomed?View attachment 7925View attachment 7925 View attachment 7926

I don't see very much wrong with them except for leaf curl and being a little droopy. Most times when this happens it is because of a weather change such as high humidity when it has been low or a substantial temp change. Is this pic taken in the heat of the afternoon or in the AM? If taken in the early AM I would say that they need a good soaking. I really don't think you have anything to worry about. I wished mine looked that good.

 

[tfb4me]

Chuck those pics were taken in the middle of the day and here is another after 9 pm my time. Time of day doesn't seem to matter the one plant looks severely wilted and maybe even dieing.

 

[tfb4me]

In this pic you can clearly see the top of a Siam queen basil plant hidden in the tomatoes row. It's thriving and is doing great.

 

[Chuck]

In this pic you can clearly see the top of a Siam queen basil plant hidden in the tomatoes row. It's thriving and is doing great. View attachment 7931

You may or may not have a serious problem. There is a virus called Curly Top and it is spread by little leaf hoppers. To determine if it is really Curly Top soak the plant in the early evening. If the plant doesn't respond and look normal the next morning it is more than likely CT and there isn't much you can do except pull it up and keep the virus from spreading to your other tomato plants. Google Curly Top Virus and see if this is what you actually have. I know of no cure, chemical or organic

 

[IcyBC]

I would have guessed that it was lack of moisture, but after reading @Chuck 's comment, I think it is wise to pull them out before they spread after you soaked them overnight. Your basil does look nice and healthy and I would hate it if the Curly Top gets to it.

 

[Sheal]

I think it's lack of nutrients. There is a lot growing around the tomatoes and they don't really like competition. I'd be inclined to clear the ground around them of everything else and then feed them and water them if necessary.

 

[headfullofbees]

What's the weather and temperature been like?